Smoke's Poutinerie bets on gravy train in Ann Arbor, The District Detroit

Founded in 2008, Smoke's Poutinerie, which is based in Ontario, serves a wide variety of the Canadian loaded French fry specialty in its 40 locations across the U.S. and Canada. A franchisee team made up mostly of Michiganders plans to open a Smoke's franchise in Ann Arbor June 4 and in The District Detroit in late fall.

The Midwest-focused franchise owners of Smoke's Poutinerie, an Ontario-based French fry chain, are looking to dip into the Detroit market — specifically, The District Detroit.

Smoke's Poutinerie is the second known potential retail tenant for the 50-block district of retail, restaurants and entertainment planned around Little Caesars Arena. Royal Oak-based Lockhart's BBQ team were in talks to open in a full-service restaurant in The District Detroit earlier this year.

The four co-owners of the franchise operation — three of them Michigan natives — are working under the business moniker The Gravy Train Inc. They have nine Smoke's Poutinerie locations slated for the Midwest, mostly in Big Ten college towns to appeal to their 18-35 demographic.

They plan to open the first of the lot — and the first Smoke's in Michigan— in Ann Arbor on June 4. Two more Michigan locations are expected to follow: East Lansing and the Detroit entertainment district.

Pushing for prime Detroit location

"We are in negotiations right now to be part of the new (Little Caesars) Arena district, which is a cool area, so we're working daily to try to make that happen," said co-owner Toine Murphy, a Detroit native. "We're actively going back and forth with some lease language to find the prime location … but we're very confident that we'll be in a high-profile place in that district once that gets up and rolling."

They would face a quick turnaround, Murphy said, and expect to open in late fall, after Little Caesars Arena's opening set for September.

Messages seeking more details were left with District Detroit representatives.

The Detroit space would likely be 1,000 square feet or less — a far cry from the Gravy Train's 3,000-square-foot Smoke's Poutinerie in Ann Arbor, in which it's invested about $500,000, said Joel Northam, another co-owner and a metro Detroit native. Build-out is underway ahead of the June opening date.

He and Murphy are joined by Hilaire Tolsma, who is from South Dakota, and Craig Comer of northern Michigan.

Ann Arbor is first Michigan location

"We have an unusual model, compared to the normal Smoke's," Northam said.

Courtesy of The Gravy Train Inc.

The Smoke's Poutinerie Midwest franchisee team — Joel Northam (from left), Toine Murphy, Craig Comer and Hilaire Tolsma — plan to open an Ann Arbor location June 4 and a small storefront in The District Detroit near Little Caesars Arena in late fall.

The poutine-focused grab-and-go eatery in Ann Arbor at 1300 S. University Ave. will be housed inside the Gravy Train's Beaver Trap Bar. That's a space previously home to large-scale bar chain World of Beer, where it will serve 40 beers on tap, focusing on Michigan brews.

Fans of the loaded Canadian French fry dish can walk up off the street and order from an outdoor window or go inside to choose from Smoke's wide variety of poutine toppings. It will serve the traditional version, topped with cheese curds and homemade gravy, but for more adventurous types, there are more than 30 options, from chipotle pulled pork to vegetarian.

The four owners signed a franchise agreement in December 2015 and signed their lease for the Ann Arbor location in late summer 2016. They plan to employ 40-50 at Smoke's Poutinerie and Beaver Trap Bar, which will open just in time for Ann Arbor Restaurant Week with 70 seats on an outdoor patio and seating for another 70 indoors.

Founded in 2008, Smoke's Poutinerie has more than 40 locations in the U.S. and Canada, stretching from Florida and Los Angeles up to Alberta, Canada.